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So the (big) brothers have fallen out over a woman. George Galloway and Tommy Sheridan I’m talking about here and the decision by Gail Sheridan to stand for the Scottish Parliament under the Solidarity banner.

Wee George is a bit miffed because he had been talking to Tommy about swinging……a few votes his way, via a collaborative effort to galvanise the 8% or so of voters likely to vote for a far left candidate in Glasgow. However, reading between the lines, George had severe misgivings about the whole thing (ie he knows his pal was guilty) and now there has been that most predictable phenomenon – a split on the left.

I suppose showing the famous clip from the Life of Brian again would be tedious, but really, how predictable are left wing politicians? If ever there were an opportunity for them to capture the imagination of voters then surely now is the time. The UK £1 trillion in defecit, increasing taxes, inflation, rising unemployment, the early days of an already unpopular UK Tory led government, bankers bonuses etc.etc.etc.

So what do the left do?

Unite and effectively mount a coherent strategy to highlight the almighty mess that capitalism has got itself into?

Or simply repeat history and endlessly fight amongst themselves.

And why is it that the left attracts such vainglorious individuals such as Galloway and Sheridan and promotes them to leadership?

Galloway is an enigma indeed. The same man who brilliantly slayed the US Senate single handed and has the ability to construct a good argument on just about any subject, too often descends into petty bigotry whether sectarian, social or political.

Sheridan’s self belief and deception has probably led him to the position of believing his own lies. If only he had listened to advice eh?

I happen to think that the SSP (and Tommy’s) presence in the Scottish Parliament was a good thing. The disenfranchised were given a voice. Warrant sales, where the poor were hounded for debt and their possessions sold off for coppers, were abolished and in lots of other matters the influence of these six MSPs was heard and taken note of.

Before you scoff at that, think about it. An MSP from another party wouldn’t have introduced the bill on warrant sales but when presented with it, a majority thought it a good and worthy measure. Hearts and minds were won over.

In the words of the song, ‘It’s all over now’

This posting hasn’t really been about Gail at all. Neither has it been about socialism or the left.

It has been about Tommy and George and that is just how Tommy and George see it.

Their agreement to fall out however probably means that neither Respect, Solidarity (nor the SSP) will be sending any MSPs to Holyrood.